People's Food Co-Op to stock fewer Kashi products after GMO flap

Cinnamon Harvest is one of seven Kashi cereals that have been verified by the Non-GMO Project.

KALAMAZOO, MI – Shoppers at the
People's Food Co-Op will be seeing fewer boxes of Kashi products on shelves in
coming weeks.

This week, a social media flap erupted about the presence of genetically modified soy and pesticides in Kashi products tested by the Cornucopia Institute.

“If we know it's GMO, we're not going
to carry it,” said Chris Dilley, general manager of the Co-Op, at
507 Harrison St., in Kalamazoo.

Kashi, which is owned by the Kellogg Co. in Battle Creek, has built a reputation for healthy, all-natural ingredients. Angry Kashi customers took to Facebook and Twitter, with a #boycottkashi hashtag and more than 200 comments on its Facebook page.

“I plan on returning the Kashi cereal I have in my cupboard. As far as I'm concerned, 'healthy' and 'GMO soy” CANNOT be used in the same sentence,” read one.

The study was conducted in October
2011, but a picture posted online by the Green Grocer in Portsmouth,
N.H., explaining why it elected to pull Kashi from its shelves, went
viral after a green blog wrote an article about it.

Dilley said the Co-Op has been getting
questions this week on its own Facebook page.

“Now that it's verified that there
are GMOs, for us, that kicks it over the line into our product
policy,” said Dilley, adding that the news “is definitely
affecting our choices about what we're going to stock from Kashi, for
sure.”

General Manager Chris Dilley has said the People's Food Co-Op will be stocking fewer Kashi products after a study revealed the presence of GMOs and pesticides.

The Co-Op, which is a member of the
Cornucopia Institute, won't be pulling products off the shelves
immediately, but its customers should see the change in coming weeks.

Kashi, which is owned by the Kellogg
Co. in Battle Creek, has announced that it is working with the
Non-GMO project. So far, seven of its 84 products have been verified
as GMO-free: 7 Whole Grain Flakes, 7 Whole Grain Pilaf, 7 Whole Grain
Puffs, Autumn Wheat, Cinnamon Harvest, Island Vanilla and Strawberry
Fields.

“For more than 25 years, Kashi has
committed to making high quality foods with positive nutrition.
Because more than 80 percent of the crops grown in North America are
grown using GMOs, some Kashi foods may contain GMO ingredients. We
care about this issue and that's why we've partnered with the Non-GMO
Project,” said Tara Reid, director of consumer products and
services, in an email. The company has also posted an official response on YouTube. “Seven Kashi cereals are now Non-GMO
Project Verified, and we are continuing to work through the process
with many of our other foods. The safety and quality of our foods is
a top priority, and we maintain stringent standards to ensure all of
our foods are safe to enjoy.”

Having been open for 76 years, Sawall Health Foods in Oakwood Plaza has seen a number of these food-related controversies over the decades.

"I certainly understand the consumer advocacy," said Mark Sawall. "The people that really need to be pressured aren't Kellogg's. The people that need to be pressured are the large conglomerate farms."

Sawall isn't yanking anything off the shelf just yet.

"We're still trying to figure out what's going on with the products they have in the pipleline waiting to be verified," said Sawall. "We're checking with Kellogg's now. As of now, we aren't pulling products from our shelves."

While Sawall said he is certainly in favor of moving away from GMOs, he hopes customers understand that it could take a number of years for the industry to find adequate supplies of non-GMO soy and other ingredients and go through the verification process.

"If there's somebody trying to vilify Kashi, you would have to vilify 90 percent of the food grown in the United States," said Sawall.

For his part, while he said he “can understand” the consumer indignation, Dilley said, “I give Kashi -- and through them, Kellogg -- some credit for starting this process.”